Kaede
by ellie.dulcie-xx
Summary: "The first thing you should know about me is that I died, as that is probably the most important event in my life. The second thing you should know about me, is that after I died, I woke up." Kaede just wants to live an ordinary life, with ordinary people, but after she dies, and wakes up in a world she had believed to be fictional, it gets a little more complicated... SI/OC. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Part 1 - Kaede**

" _Normal is an illusion. What is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly." - Morticia Addams_

* * *

The first thing you should know about me is that I died, as that is probably the most important event in my life.

The second thing you should know about me, is that after I died, I woke up.

When you die, the one thing you can expected is to stay dead. Even with ideas like rebirth - which I have never believed in - you don't return as the same person. No matter what, when you die, everything about you is gone. It is over in a heartbeat.

My sister never really liked to talk about death. She'd make sure to shut down any conversations about it, and was always more fearful of others dying than I ever was. Though I was scared of people I cared for dying, it was something far away, that wouldn't affect me for years.

However, I thought about my own death more than I would ever tell anyone else. Would people miss me if I ever died? Would it be quick, or drawn out? Would I be old or young? What would my grave say? Would those I considered my friends visit? Would my family cry? What would happen to the things and people I had left behind?

What would happen next?

Sometimes I believe in heaven and hell, other times, when I am sad and depressed late at night, I believe we simply stop. Occasionally I ponder if our souls and consciousnesses remain in our bodies after death, and we are left screaming in unresponsive bodies until the end of our days. And occasionally, I think of rebirth.

To be honest, whenever I think of reincarnation, it just slips through my mind. Every source I have heard of makes you a new person, atoning for the mistakes of your last life. This always seemed unfair to me. For You, and everything that makes You you, is gone, and it is simply a new person paying for all of your screw ups, just as you must've done for someone else.

However, when the tyres are screeching all around me, and my backpack is flying through the air like a screwed up bird, all I can think is, _Huh, guess I won't have to do my history homework after all…_

It is surprisingly depressing.

I don't die immediately. Everything goes very blurry and I can't see, so I think my glasses are gone. I think I'm also probably showing people my pants, which makes me want to laugh, but when I try, all I can feel is a warm liquid pooling around my chin, oozing from my mouth. _My blood._ I can see my house and my school, which is surprisingly comforting, and I can hear someone screaming my name. It's weird. But I can remember wondering if I'd die like this, many times as I cross this road on my way home from school, wondering what people would think, but I still never thought this was how I would truly die. A moment of carelessness. Stepping out onto the road, forgetting to check. One mistake, and it was all done. Game Over.

I hope someone remembers to tell my parents soon. I hope they can continue to live, and aren't sad. I hope my little sister goes on to accomplish great things. I wish I could tell them I loved them one last time - even my annoying little sister. And selfish though it may be, I hope I am never forgotten.

And then I died.

.

.

.

And then I woke up.

Everything around me was dark, and it was stuffy and warm. I felt like I was floating - completely cut off from reality. Was I in hell? I didn't know. I could still feel phantom pains from my death - shards of glass that had long gone, and broken bones that were once again whole. I didn't know how long I was in the dark place, nothing changed there but me. I grew and changed, but everything around me was still. The place became cramped, at eventually I could barely move. It felt less like I was floating, and more like I had been shoved in a tiny box, two sizes too small for me. I had no idea what was going on, nor how long I was in that place, but suddenly, after what felt like years to me, the darkness began to rock and fadre, and I was surrounded by light. I felt like I was being squeezed through a tiny tube, like toothpaste. My head and body burned, and I wanted to scream, and even when the darkness went away, I could see nothing clearly. The new place I had found myself in was glaringly white, and made my eyes itch and tingle. I felt weaker than I had ever felt before, and like my soul and mind had just returned to me after many nights in the dark. I was alone and confused and nothing around me made sense. I was lying on a cold metal table, and I was too scared of what was going on to even scream. It felt like an eternity of blurry shapes moving around me, hearing nothing but disjointed screams, murmured words and electronic beeps. I don't know whether it was just a few moments of an eternity, but the next thing I knew, I was back in the darkness. It was a different one from what I had become used to, but it was comforting. It was colder than it had been before, and reminded me more of my life before the dark place, than the uncomfortable warmth of That place.

It was weeks before I could see again, and I missed the shitty eyesight of my life before, more than anything. All I can remember of the next while was blurs of silver and black, and a tingle of energy that surrounded everything - myself included. When my eyesight returned, I came to a startling conclusion. I had been reborn. Originally, I had thought that I had just been in a coma or something, and that what I had thought was my death, had not been. But, it turns out that once again I was a baby, which meant that the strange dark place I had been squeezed out of had been a womb. My new mothers womb. But I never saw my mother - my elder brother and father, sure, but never my mother. It was quite some time before I learnt that she had died due to complications in childbirth. I always felt guilty about that, and brother and father were always sad when mother was mentioned, so we didn't talk about her again. I looked a lot like how my mother had looked - same green eyes, and dark brown hair - and nothing like the rest of my family. They were all silver and black. That really should have been my first clue. Looking back though, there were so many things that I just dismissed at the time, but were actually proof of what had happened to me. So many things that I forced myself to forget, rather than face the situation I had found myself in.

My name was Kaede Hatake.

I was a quiet, serious baby - probably because my soul was fifteen years older than the rest of me.

I was the younger sister of Kakashi Hatake, and my the only daughter of Sakumo Hatake, and I had been reborn into the Naruto Universe.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **Cheesy I know, but I figured I should try a self Insert. I read a couple of good ones, which was weird, cause I had loads of preconceived notions of their stupidity, which was very untrue.**

 **I won't have many authors notes this long, but I wanted to clarify a few things.**

 **For one thing, this is a Self Insert, however, my character will only loosely be based off of me. The original version will be completely me, but I feel that if someone found themselves in a completely new world, they would change, so I'll think of how I would change, but I'll also give Kaede characteristics I strive for, but I'm not sure I achieve.**

 **Also, these are the ages of the main characters at the end of this chapter.**

 **Kakashi -** 2 years old

 **Sakumo -** 3 years before his canon death. (I can't find out his age).

 **Kaede -** 0 years old

 **Just wanted to clarify.**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**

 **Ellie**


	2. Chapter 2

" _That's just the way it is. Change is inevitable. Instead of resisting it, you're better served going with the flow." - Shunsui Kyoraku, Bleach._

* * *

When I first figured out that I was now in the Naruto Universe, I quickly went into denial. I came up with thousands of other situations that could be possible, barely sleeping in my search for an answer that made sense, but I always came back to that same ridiculous theory. Rebirth into a fictional world - it was just insane. That was when I began to scream. I think my Father didn't really know what to do as I had never really screamed before, but at that moment, I didn't care. I cried for what felt like days on end, only stopping to draw in breath. I must have been a nightmare. I cried for my old life, and the family and friends I had left behind. I cried for my new family, and the pain that they would most likely go through. Finally, I cried for myself, and the disaster my death had begun.

And then I moved on.

I had no more tears left to shed, I couldn't keep crying forever. So I did the only thing I could. I accepted what had happened to me - there was nothing I could do about the situation now - and so I began to prepare for what I knew was to come. Unfortunately for me, I didn't know much about the pre-cannon series, as I had stopped watching the show seriously after the Pein arc - and now it had come back to bite me in the ass. I had never thought that my entire life would revolve around a television series, but there was nothing I could do about that. I would simply strive to survive until the time where I could help. If that meant learning the ninja arts, so be it.

Of course, I had to learn the language first. It was similar to Japanese, but there were slight differences - the pronunciation and spelling minutely changed. I had only had a basic knowledge of the language before, so it took me a while to learn it - though it had been much faster than I had expected. I think part of it was perhaps my new body, and the child's brain it held were designed for adapting. Another factor in the way I picked up the language so quickly, was that it was used around me constantly, and I had to either learn it, or remain in the dark. But most importantly, I missed reading and books, and to enjoy either of them, I had to learn the language of the Naruto world. Joy. I will admit that while I was learning, it was the singular most boring thing that I have ever done in my life, but once I had the knowledge, it was incredible. A whole world of books had been opened to me, and I was in my own personal heaven. I didn't talk much, and I think that worried my new Otou-san, but I more than made up for it with the time I spent reading. Every novel I read was like a fantasy story - fictional or fact. Everything was so different and interesting - I was in a world where people could actually walk up walls and breath fire. If that wasn't awesome, nothing was.

My new family was an interesting topic for me, as they were so different from everything in my previous life. While my previous family had been a chaotic mess of overprotective love (with quite a few screaming matches, mind you), my new family was the exact opposite. Kakashi and Sakumo were quiet and calm, and far less likely to lose control of a situation. We worked well together, as their prodigy nature balanced out my sixteen year old soul (and when had that happened…?). My Okaa-San was still a strange topic for all of us, and I don't think it would ever stop being so. I had known for a while that she had died during childbirth, but it had taken me quite a while to remember that she had died around this time in canon anyway - without my reincarnation. It was still strange to think that I had caused someone's death - however inadvertently, but I guess I'll have to get used to that if I want to become a Shinobi. And with my family, that's a given. According to my Otou-San, I look a lot like my mother rather than my remaining family - same straight brown hair and bright green eyes. Otou-San often jokes that if he hadn't been there when I was 'conceived' (bleurgh!) then he would think that he had had nothing to do with my creation. I think the only reason he says stuff like that while I'm in hearing distance is because most babies wouldn't understand what he is talking about - I don't think Kakashi knows what he's talking about, and he's a three year old genius prodigy. Unfortunately for my poor naive Otou-San, I am no ordinary baby, and I can catch all of his barely hidden references to sex and general pervertedness. I am beginning to think that Canon Naruto was right, and that every powerful shinobi is a pervert - hidden or not.

Speaking of perverted Shinobi, it was soon after my first birthday that I first met Jiraiya of the Sanin - an old friend of my Otou-San - and his blond apprentice, Minato Namikaze. Jiraiya had burst into the house with an infectious brightness that either made you want to get up and jump around, or drop kick him in the nuts. He was insane. Minato, on the other hand, possessed a quiet confidence that made you just automatically believe in him - I could see how he became the Yondaime. I was quick to fall into both Minato and Jiraiya' charismatic personalities, and I am unashamed to admit I began to hero-worship the pair. But seriously, the two were incredibly insightful, and quickly learnt not to treat me like the child I actually was, unlike all of the other nameless, plebeian visitors the Hatake family received (who persisted in pinching my cheeks and cooing at me no matter how many times I attempted to bite their fingers off (it probably would have been more effective if I had more than two teeth)).

The three of them often spoke of war. They would usher Kakashi out the room to play with one of their multitude of Summons, and I think the only reason I was allowed to stay was because they figured I was too young to understand them. That, and I would scream like a Banshee every time they tried to get me to leave so that they could talk about "adult things." Goddamit, I had the mind of a sixteen year old, I would not be patronised!

Minato, Jiraiya and Otou-san would sit down and talk, in low serious voices. The smiles that usually adorned their faces missing, as they spoke of the heavy tensions between all the Elemental Nations.

"Kumo is amassing weapons, and has recently resealed the Nibi. While Iwa has called back both of their Jinchuriki. War is coming, no matter what anyone does." Jiraiya had looked grim - nothing like how I remembered him from the Series, and his chakra had been a tightly coiled, pool of tension. I got the impression that very few people were care free at this time.

"It's pretty much guaranteed that if conflict does break out, then at least Kiri won't get involved. They're too busy dealing with internal conflicts." Minato interjected. His face was weighed down with the stress of the possible war that loomed on the horizon, and he looked far older and more mature than he should have been. It looked wrong on his face. He was the kind of person who looked as though they should always be smiling.

"Iwa, on the other hand, will definitely join in a War. They've been looking for a reason to kill Konoha Shinobi for a while now, and they're still not over their defeat in the last war." Otou-San seemed sadder than I had seen him in a long time. He had explained to me before about his dislike of killing, and that he wished that all of the nations could live together in peace.

"I think it'll be a while before the conflict actually begins, though." Jiraiya said, frowning. "Nobody wants to be the one to light the first match."

"Theres still time." Minato spoke softly. "We can only hope for peace. That the next generation will not have to grow up in a war."

All of their eyes fell on me, and I felt really uncomfortable. I had to agree, though. I knew that teaching children to fight and kill was normal in the Elemental Nations, but as someone who had lived a life where killing was deemed the ultimate sin, I couldn't help but be disgusted by indoctrination that occurred here. Everything in this world was better if you were a ninja - housing was cheaper, shops had better discounts, schooling was free. Everything. All you had to do to get all of these amazing deals, was go kill people for your country.

The worst thing was that I was beginning to believe it too.

The Will of Fire was the first step. It was preached about **all the time**. It was basically the belief that we should value our comrades - fight and die for them. It was something the I believed wholeheartedly, as it was often followed to a certain degree in my first life.

The second stage was learning to fight. The life of a ninja was often glorified within the Village - save the princess, protect your friends and Village, gain respect, defeat the bad guy etc. To do all of this, people needed to be able to fight and kill, so that they could stop the villains. But the world was never so black and white. Someone who started off motivated and caring, could quickly become a monster in the wrong circumstances. Orochimaru and Sasuke were perfect examples of that. They both started off willing to give their lives for their comrades, caring for their respective Teams like a family, but in their search for power, they abandoned the people they had once held dear - closing themselves off from any bonds.

Kakashi would be starting the Academy in a few months, and it made my heart ache.

He was so excited about it, - training regularly with our Dad - but even though I didn't know very much about what happened before the Kyuubi attack, I knew that he would suffer greatly in the coming years. I can remember this one line vaguely that Kakashi says to Sasuke, when the Uchiha asks him what he would do if he killed everyone he cared about.

Kakashi replied that everyone he cared about was already dead.

That always struck me as horribly sad, and made me grateful for the life I had. And look how that turned out - I'll be living that life alongside my brother.

Hopefully, I may be able to lessen part of that burden. That is my reason for wanting to be a ninja - to protect my precious people from harm, and make the future a better place.

Even as the memories of my first life fade away to blurred images, I think I will always remember the day where we went to hand in Kakashi's entrance application for the Academy. He had been so excited, but my Otou-San had looked so broken and tired. I guess that he knew that with his decision to send my four year old, prodigy brother to the Academy, he was taking away his childhood and making him a murderer - no matter how accepting this society was of child killers, it still seemed wrong.

When we had been walking to the Academy, we had ran into someone I would never forget - no matter how much I wished that I could. Maito Dai and Gai. I had been sitting on my Father's shoulders, and I was eternally grateful for the fact - I could bury my face in his hair and avoid viewing the green spandex monstrosity for as long as possible. It was shocking to think that Dai had managed to reproduce, and that Gai had been wearing Spandex for pretty much his entire life. It made me wonder who Gai's mother had been - she must have had balls of steel to be with Dai for any length of time.

"Come on Tou-san. Hurry." Kakashi spoke up impatiently, glancing between me and Sakumo, an disrupting me from my thoughts.

"There's no need to rush. The Academy isn't going to run away, is it?" Otou-san replied, always the source of logic and reason.

"There's a set time for entrance applications." He complained.

"You'll be fine, Kaka-nii." I spoke up, chirruping from Father's shoulders.

"Imouto… stop ganging up on me…"

It was as we reached the entrance that we ran into Gai and Dai. Gai looked despondent, but I don't think either of my family members noticed. For ninja, they could be seriously dense sometimes - the epitome of socially-stunted prodigies.

"Oh, nice to meet you! My son will be attending the Academy." Otou-san called out brightly to Dai.

"...Tou-san…" Kakashi muttered. I just rolled my eyes, fiddling with Dad's hair.

"I hope those two will get along okay." Sakumo continued as if Kakashi hadn't interrupted.

Dai simply grinned at us, before speaking up. "I'm afraid that will be impossible!"

"Huh? What a thing to say! Are you one of those monster parents?!" Otou-san could be so overdramatic sometimes.

"No Tou-san…. You're wrong. He failed the Academy entrance exam." Kakashi spoke up again,while I silently watched them all interact from my perch. Men could be so strange sometimes...

"Oh, pardon me! I just assumed since you were in front of the Academy."

Dai started laughing vigorously,

"Don't worry about it!" He called out

"Uh, I don't think it's anything to be laughing about." Kakashi muttered quietly to himself, but we were all either ninja or training to be one, so it was easy to hear.

"Hey, Kakashi. Don't be rude." Otou-san chastised.

"But Tou-san, you were a lot ruder just a minute ago. I mean, this guy is trying to get into the Academy, even though he can't use Ninjutsu" Gai looked down trodden at my brothers words, and no matter how much I loved Kakashi, I really just wanted to slap him. He was being incredibly rude. "Oops, we should get going, or we're going to be late,"

"Right…" Otou-san stammered. "Excuse me."

As we walked past, I heard Gai smirk from his place behind us. "Your name is Kakashi Hatake, right?"

Sakumo turned around, moving me round as well. I smiled to myself when Gai grinned brightly, sticking his thumb out in front of him, practically buzzing with energy,

"Thank you for your support!"

"Huh?" Kakashi looked confused, but I could feel Otou-san smiling.

The two spandex wearing Taijutsu users turned around to leave, and as I watched them go, I smiled. That was the Gai that I remembered from the show. Konoha's Noble Green Beast.

"Kakashi…" Otou-san spoke up, glancing down at my brother, and in turn making me face him from my spot on his shoulders. "Don't slack off just because you got into the Academy. At the rate he's training, that boy will become stronger than you."

"He will?"

"They haven't announced the alternatives yet, have they? The Academy isn't dumb." Sakumo spoke up, lowering me off of his shoulders, so that he could kneel next to us. "You should ask what his name is and remember it."

"What…?"

"He'll be a good rival for you." Otou-san continued.

"Hey, you!" Kakashi asked, waiting until Gai turned around before continuing. "What's your name?"

Gai grinned widely. "Maito Gai! I'm going to become stronger than anyone around!"

As the two Spandex wearing Taijutsu users walked away, I spoke up for the first time in a while.

"He will be. Strong, I mean." Otou-san glanced at me, and Kaka-nii stared at me as if I had grown another head. "I can just tell." Otousan still seemed wary, but it didn't really bother me. Even without the knowledge from my first life, it was easy to tell. You'd have to be blind, deaf and dumb not to see the potential within Maito Gai, and if people couldn't see it, it would be their loss.

* * *

It was soon after Kakashi was set to start the Academy that Otou-san picked up on both of our training. I was still one, but I would be turning two soon, and I think that Sakumo had picked up on my sixteen year old intelligence. Therefore, he taught me more on Theory work, History and other subjects that did not require much work. Kaka-nii, on the other hand, did Taijutsu, Ninjutsu and Genjutsu training regularly, as well as practice wielding a tantō, just as our father had become famous for. A tanto was a short, straight blade about 30cm long with a single sharp edge and a blunt bottom. The one my Otou-san wielded was called the 'White Light Chakra Sabre', and was apparently incredibly famous throughout the Elemental Nations. It was his Tantō, combined with the Hatake White Chakra, that had given him his nickname: The White Fang. It was a name that surpassed the Legendary Sannin, and struck fear in the hearts of any ninja who heard it. It was a truly powerful name - and Kakashi and I would be the ones to carry it on.

Even though he was young, Kaka-nii was already very proficient with his practice blade. He had to be. He was young, but anyone who met him could already tell he was a prodigy - and a powerful one. He was smarter than many long-time Genin. It made me really proud of my big brother - but I also feared for him. And I could tell Otou-san did too. Everything that Sakumo taught Kakashi was meant to be used from a distance, or improve his reach. Anything to keep him off of the frontlines of the upcoming war. Anything to keep him safe. This world was dangerous, and people who weren't prepared didn't live to learn from their mistakes - they died. Often horribly.

It was around this time that I learnt that I had a rare condition known as Chakra Hypersensitivity. Chakra Hypersensitivity (or CHS for short) was an incredibly rare condition that generally only showed up within civilian villages - it was almost completely unheard of for someone of Shinobi decent to have CHS.

We had actually found out about my condition during a training accident, were Otou-San had been teaching Kakashi how to cast Genjutsu. My brother had been being taught how to send out his Chakra, making nets out of it, when he had sent it out too far. I had been sitting on the grass near them, a book clutched in my tiny baby hands, when it had hit. There had been no warning. As the Chakra hit me, I had a breath sense of familiarity, as if Kaka-Nii had been standing right next to me, as well as a faint tingle of lightning, before I had begun screaming. It felt as though my veins were on fire, and as if I was being pulled apart. Memories of my death flashed before my eyes, and I could feel the broken glass still in my back - even though the rational part of my mind knew there was none. The smell of blood - my blood - filled my nose, and the world faded and I was lying on the ground, bleeding out. My left leg was crushed, and there was hard, concrete beneath my back. My breath quickened, and someone was screaming - it took me a few moments to realise it was me. I could hear Otou-san and Kaka-nii taking, calling out to me, but it was faint. As if there was a whole ocean between us. I felt as though I was drowning, and all I could see was red. So much red. I was lost, too deep within my memories to comprehend anything - let alone the fingers that brushed against my pressure points, sending me into the warm embrace of darkness…

.

When I woke up, I was back in my room, lying on my bed. I sat up as well as I could, gripping the bars of the cot to lever myself up. It was dark, so I knew I must have been asleep for a while, though I couldn't remember how I came to be in my room. The last thing I could remember was watching Kakashi train with Otou-san, and then _redredred_ …

I quickly shook my head to distance myself from the memories of my death. It had been almost two years since my 'death', and consequent rebirth, but it still haunted me. I think it always will.

The door to my room opened, and I could see Otou-san watching me sadly. He smiled softly, before moving across the room silently, and scooping me up. I never liked being picked up, as I adored any independence that I could find, but he looked so… strange, that I let him. I couldn't place the emotion on his face. It was completely unrecognisable - I'd never seen it on his face before.

"Wha-" I trailed off. My mind felt foggy, and it was hard to focus on anything. I watched as Sakumo moved towards me, before picking me up, rocking me back and forth silently.

"Are you feeling any better, Kaede?"

"Just confused. What happened?" My voice sounded quite, even to me, and I could hear it shaking minutely. I didn't like it. I felt so weak and helpless. I hated it.

Otou-san sighed softly, smiling down at me sadly. He looked so sympathetic and worried, I felt panic slipping over me like a familiar coat. I really hated it, and just wanted to sleep away the rest of this horrible day, before starting again tomorrow.

"You started screaming when Kakashi's Chakra hit you." He started slowly, and I got the impression that I wasn't going to like what Otou-san was going to say. "I used one of your pressure points to knock you out, and then took you to the hospital. You have an incredibly rare condition known as Chakra Hypersensitivity. It basically means that you are more attuned to Chakra than the basic ninja. It won't affect you too much during your day to day life, but if you come into contact with high densities of Chakra, you are likely to react painfully. Kaede, I know you want to be a Kunoichi, but it will be very difficult for you with your condition. It is possible - people have managed to get past their condition before - but if you end up having a reaction out in the field, you are likely to die."

I felt stiff and scared. I had a pretty good idea why I was so sensitive to Chakra, and I doubt that I would ever be able to work past it. I had lived most of my life in a place where 'Chakra' didn't exist - or at least not in the same context. It meant that I could feel Chakra, as it was something so new and strange to me, not something that had always been there that I just took for granted. I could easily picture a place where all the insane stunts that originated from this mystical energy, that people just took for granted here, simply weren't possible. It meant that I was constantly aware of all the chakra that surrounded me - all the Chakra. I could feel the condensed, life filled energy that every person in this work contained. I could sense that rich swirling energy that surrounded and encompassed every living thing - Nature Chakra. The huge malicious chakra of the Jinchuuriki of Konoha was like background noise throughout my day to day life, and it was easy for me to feel the red chakra that swirled throughout the village. Chakra was beautiful, and I loved the sensation of it. At times, I felt like I could reach out and touch it. There was no way I was ever giving this up.

"It's fine, Otou-san." I patted his arm as I spoke, attempting to reassure him. I hadn't realised before now that not everyone could sense all the Chakra that surrounded us. "No matter what happens, and what obstacles I face, I'm gonna become a powerful Kunoichi, and then I can protect you and Kaka-nii."

Sakumo was looking at me strangely, but he didn't look as upset as before, so I considered it a win. Things were moving quickly now. Everyone knew that War was on the horizon, and the Village was beginning to prepare. But, no matter what, I was determined to protect my new family, and something as minute as Chakra Hypersensitivity sure as hell wasn't going to stop me.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **This chapter was really difficult. The plot will start to pick up soon, and I have plans to introduce more characters in the next few chapters.**

 **I do have a plan for this story, but I still need to iron out the details, so any comments or criticisms are welcome.**

 **Also, these are the ages of the main characters at the end of this chapter.**

 **Kakashi -** 3 years old (almost 4 years old)

 **Sakumo -** 27 years old

 **Kaede -** 1 years old (almost 2 years old)

 **Please review to tell me what you think.**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**

 **Ellie**


	3. Chapter 3

" _Sometimes, we need someone to accept us and love us first. Then, we would learn to see ourselves through that person's eyes and learn to love ourselves." - Yuki Sohma, Fruits Basket._

* * *

When Kaka-nii began attending the Academy, Otou-san started taking more serious missions. Sometimes he would be gone for weeks at a time, and then return at the dead of night with blood staining his silver hair red. Sometimes, while Otou-san was away, he would leave behind one of his summons to keep an eye on Kaka-nii and I. My favourite of his summoning dogs was definitely Pakka. Pakka was a short brown pug, with droopy eyes and a motherly nature. Right now, she was heavily pregnant, so she was delegated to babysitting duty, rather than helping Sakumo on his missions. She was so close to her due date, that her stomach ended below her legs, and she was usually found lying down as she bossed me and Kaka-nii around. I loved her though, and the way she always told Kakashi off did nothing but endear her to me. While Kaka-nii was at the Academy, I was usually left to carry Pakka round the village to take her to her Vet appointments at the Inuzuka compound. She was really heavy, but it was nothing that a little bit of Chakra couldn't fix. As someone who had once had no upper body strength _or_ chakra, I could really appreciate both of them now. Chakra was a godsend, sometimes.

However, whenever Otou-san was going on a **really** long mission, he would either issue a D-rank mission to keep an eye on me while Kaka-nii was at school, or he would get one of his friends to watch over us. It was through this that I meant another member of the Legendary Sannin, as well as the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, Orochimaru and Kushina Uzumaki.

At first, I had been super wary of the Snake Sannin, as I could remember everything that he had done to Konoha during the Canon Universe, but even though this Orochimaru was creepy, he was still definitely loyal to the Leaf Village at the moment. It was through him that I learnt that Tsunade had already left the village of Konohagakure, and had no plans of returning any time soon. Orochimaru actually wasn't that bad as company, and he helped me practice my Calligraphy, as well as Kunai throwing. He treated me as if I was older than I actually was, and would tell me a great deal about the ninja system. I guess, that since he was a prodigy himself, he had no issue with teaching a girl that wasn't even two yet, how to throw deadly life-ending weapons.

Kushina, on the other hand, didn't like that I was already training, even if (as I repeatedly pointed out) I was exceedingly close to turning two years old. I liked Kushina a lot, as her bright bubbly personality helped alleviate a lot of the tension that the upcoming War had dropped on the Village. She let me help with her pranks as well. Well... I say _'help'_ , but it was really more along the lines of the redhead carrying me around while she set up various trip wires and traps throughout the village. Whenever Kaka-nii told her off for being a ' _bad influence_ ', Kushina would say that it was practice for when I had to set up traps out on missions. Even though I liked Kushina Uzumaki a great deal, I couldn't help but be wary of her. Whenever she got emotional, I could feel the malicious chakra of the Nine Tailed Fox bubbling around under her skin. The chakra made me want to be physically sick and scream as loudly as I could. I think Kushina picked up on that, as she was always quite calm when she was with me, compared to when she was in the company of Minato or my brother - who she teased relentlessly. However, it could have just been because I still disliked talking, and so was generally very quiet.

Kakashi was a lot busier than usual, as he spent a lot of time working on things from school, or practicing with Otou-san. He would regularly complain that the other people in his class were stupid, but he always sounded just little bit fond of them. It was sweet. He also spent a lot of the time telling me about, and I quote, the "insanity" that was Maito Gai. Gai had managed to get into the Academy due to his hard work, but he struggled greatly in numerous aspects of the Academy Curriculum. Kaka-nii had told me a funny story of when he attempted to produce the Clone Jutsu, but all he had managed to duplicate was his clothes. I had found it hilarious (oh god, baby giggles, how I hat you), but Otou-san had looked sympathetic. I guess it was because all of the Academy students were going to need every skill available to them if they were going to survive in the upcoming days.

However, there were many occasions where it was simply impossible for someone to watch over us. Most of the Jonin and Chunin were required for extra missions and training, and Pakka had to spend more time with Otou-san's other summoning dogs so that she could get ready to birth and raise her new pups. Because of this, on many occasions I was simply left to my own devices whenever Kaka-nii went to the Academy. It was during this time that I took to wandering around the village in an attempt to familiarise myself to the layout. Everything looked huge - people, buildings and massive mountains with faces alike - and I always felt a bit overwhelmed. However, everyone was very kind to me, and would always point me in the right direction. I had spent most of my, admittedly short, second life within the Hatake Compound, so even if I could move around my home blindfolded, I didn't really know where things were within the Village Hidden in the Leaves. This needed to be changed at once. If I was going to become an awesome ninja, then I had to at least know the layout of my own home - it was also something that Kaka-nii took near-sadistic delight in teasing me about, and that couldn't be allowed to continue.

It was through these tiny adventures through Konoha, that I found the play park - heaven of all children below the age of ten. Even Kaka-nii liked it, and he didn't like many things or people outside of Otou-san and I. I blamed it on the well known fact that all Ninja Prodigies had zero social skills. The park was always thriving, and I could easily identify all of the Clan children who had been left there while their parents dealt with the influx of missions that had occurred recently. I struggled to socialise with the other children at the park, as most of them were a quarter of my mental age - at best. They just seemed so immature to me. I liked to play a game where I would try and guess which Clan the ninja children belonged to. It was actually very easy. The group of loud, straggly ruffians with varying shade of brown hair and red triangles marked on their cheeks were the Inuzuka. The small gaggle of gossiping girls and quiet boys with dusty blonde and orange hair and blue, pupil-less eyes were Yamanaka. The Akimichi were the slightly bigger (not fat) children, hanging around with the sharp eyed, spiky haired Nara's. The Hyuuga's were incredibly easy to identify, due to their ever so slightly creepy blank, white eyes, but they rarely came to the park, due to the slight arrogance that their clan had become known for. The Uchiha were also easy to spot, due to their dark hair and eyes, and the supremacist, arrogant attitude that most of them shared.

However, the game _was_ slightly pointless due to the fact that almost every Clan child wore the symbol of their Clan somewhere on their clothing at all times - almost like a brand stating who they belonged to. Even I wore my Clan Symbol, though it was usually hidden by my hair (which had grown significantly during the last year, and now brushed against my shoulder blades). The Hatake Clan Symbol was very simple, especially compared to the confusing mass of lines that made up the Akimichi, Yamanaka and Nara symbols. It was a diamond, with a simple three by three grid fit inside. It represented a field, as that was where all life began, and tied to our roots as a clan of farmers. Most people tended to forget that it was actually a Clan marking, and usually thought it was just something I used to decorate the back of my clothing - especially since neither my brother or father wore it. Nevertheless, I was proud to be a member of the Hatake Clan (even if there were only three members), and I would wear my emblem with pride.

It was actually while playing my strange little game that I noticed something odd. There were never any Aburame's in the play park. I had read about them in some books on Shinobi clans, that had been given to me by my Otou-san, Orochimaru and Minato, and I could vaguely remember one of the main characters in the Naruto Anime was an Aburame, though I couldn't actually remember his name well, as it had been years since I last watched the series. I had red a great deal about their abilities to control Kikai Bugs, and even though I thought it was kinda gross to keep bugs living in your body, all of the abilities the Aburame Clan possessed sounded really cool.

And so began my Village wide search for an Aburame to talk to.

…. It was very difficult ….

It wasn't until the end of September, just a month before my birthday and two months of searching, that I actually encountered an Aburame Clan Member. And, frustratingly enough, he was actually in the Play Park I had first visited, all those many months ago.

It made me want to gouge my eyes out with a rusty kunai.

He was tiny - even smaller than me (and I was frustratingly small, even for a child my age. I took after my mother, who had been shorter than some fifteen year olds, even in her twenties) - and it made it look like his big greenish coat was going to eat him. He had his hood up, to protect him against the early Autumn chill, no doubt, but I could just about see a mob of wild brown hair peeking out over the top of his sunglasses. He was watching a small bee bob back and forth between the flowers. Most of the bees were beginning to vanish, in the way that most insects do during the colder months, and so was the only bug out and about - capturing all of the small Aburame's attention.

I moved up behind him before squatting down next to his crouched form. I could feel his Chakra tense as I moved up to him. Due to my Condition, I was naturally attuned to all forms of chakra, and it was almost as easy as breathing for me to sense the chakra within a person. It was strange. It was easy for me to tell that he was from the Aburame clan, due to the kinda' wriggly feeling of his chakra - like the Kikaichu he had surely hosted for all of his admittedly short life. If his Chakra was as controlled as I could sense it to be already, at his young age, then he would have no choice but to join the Ninja Academy - especially with the distrust that had been brewing between the Elemental Nations since the last Shinobi War.

"Hello." I had a feeling that I was going to have to do most of the work in carrying this conversation, which was strange, as I didn't really talk much. At. All.

"...Hello…"

The conversation just kinda' died, and I began to feel exceedingly awkward.

"Do you like watching Bees? You seem very into it."

He nodded minutely before replying softly. "Yes, I find them very interesting. Why you ask? Because Honey Bees such as this one fly from flower to flower, spreading pollen across Konoha and sustaining all the plant life here. This in turn allows humans to live in this location, meaning the Bees are the foundation which all life on Konoha is built on." He was very well spoken for a two year old, but it didn't bother me as much as it might have in my first life. In the Elemental Nations, people tended to develop faster, at least mentally. Everyone expected more of children, and treated them as if they were far older than they actually were - especially before and during Wartime. It was part of the reason why people were never surprised by my intellect - they assumed I was just another Hatake Clan Prodigy. It was surprisingly freeing, as I never had to pretend to be someone that I'm not.

…. However, it was a bit annoying that I couldn't reference nerdy things anymore, as people never understood the reference, and just looked at me like I was insane.

I missed Doctor Who….

"I think Bees are interesting as well." I told the Aburame boy after a moment of thought. I was easily side tracked, as my mind went off on tangents regularly. It made me quite absent minded… "Not many people know about pollination and Biology, so it's nice to meet someone who does. Especially someone my own age. My name's Kaede Hatake. What's yours? We should definitely be friends."

From what I could see of his face, he looked a bit surprised, though I'm not sure whether it was from my general bluntness, or something else.

"Why do you wish to be my friend?" Ah. I knew from my Otou-san that Aburame's struggled to make friends, due to their Kikaichū. I guess that was what had surprised him earlier.

"Do you not want to be my friend?" I asked him quietly. I had always struggled to make friends - in this life, and my last - and it would seriously knock my self-esteem if I was turned down by a two year old.

"No, that is not it. I am simply surprised you wish to befriend me. Why you ask? Because most people do not feel comfortable being around members of the Aburame Clan due to the Kikaichū which we keep inside our bodies."

"Nah, it doesn't bother me. Besides, my Otou-san always said that we should judge people on their personality and actions, rather than things they can't control or alter. I know you chose to house the Kikaichū within you, but it is something that helps you fight and survive."

I could see his eyebrows scrunching up into a tiny frown that made me want to coo at the cuteness. "You mentioned you are in the Hatake Clan. Is your father the White Fang, Sakumo Hatake?"

"Yep." I popped the 'P' loudly, smiling at the confused looking Aburame. "Why, surprised?"

"A little. Why you ask? It is just that you do not look much like the members of the Hatake Clan are known to appear. Your Clan is renowned for spiky silver hair and black eyes, which you do not have. It simply wasn't what I was expected."

I nodded - his explanation made a lot of sense. Most people I encountered were surprised at my family name, as my appearance didn't match either my brother or father - I took after my mother so much, the only thing I got from my Otou-san was the slightly white tint my hair took in the sunlight. I had even inherited my mother's height, and I doubt I would ever grow past 5'2" during this life.

"Well, you know who I am, but I don't know what your name is. Care to introduce yourself?"

"My name is Shichiro Aburame." He spoke quietly, watching me through his tinted glasses.

"Nice to meet you Shichiro-kun. Wanna be friends?"

I shoved out my hand towards him, seeing if he would be willing to shake it as a sign of friendship. He hesitated for a moment, watching my hand warily.

"That would be acceptable." He took my hand, and we shook. I could feel my cheeks hurting from my grin, but I didn't care.

I had finally made a friend.

* * *

It was early November, just a few weeks after my Birthday. Otou-san had managed to get a week of leave, and had stayed off to celebrate me turning two. Shichiro had come round and even though we hadn't known each other long, we had bonded over our mutual love of reading, Bees and comfortable silence. A couple of Kaka-nii's sort-of friends came as well, but my brother just seemed very awkward. He was going to be moving up a year when the new term came, and he had been too focused on his studies and training to make friends. I recognised Gai easily, and he seemed to remember me faintly (though he did mess up my name **so** many times), but I couldn't remember any of the other people with him - either from the Anime or Kaka-nii's rants about his classmates. There was a girl with short brown hair framing her face and rectangular purple markings across her cheeks, who was talking quietly with a loud Uchiha boy wearing orange tinted goggles. There was also a short boy with a bandana who was chewing on a Senbon, as he absent-mindedly chucked Kunai at the training targets outside. The final person from Kakashi's year was a boy named Hayate, who was having an animated conversation with Kaka-nii about Kenjutsu. Hayate looked incredibly tired due to the heavy black bags underneath his eyes, and I was getting a faint sense of Déjà vu whenever I looked at him, though I couldn't tell why.

Now though, Otou-san had began to take missions again after his week of leave - due to the tensions building between the countries, no one could stay off for long, and as such, wasn't able to come into the Academy Open Day. The Open Day was a big event that occurred annually for the two youngest year groups within the Academy, and allowed young Shinobi in training to show off their new skills to their family. It had originally been created especially for Civilian Families, as a way to reassure parents who were nervous about their children becoming Ninja's, as it would show them that their kids were getting given everything they needed to survive. It was also an opportunity for younger Clan kids and siblings to get an idea of what the Academy was like, in the hopes of persuading them to join when they were old enough - meaning there were lots of opportunities for smaller kids (like me) to take part in.

Since Otou-san was unable to go, I had been forcefully volunteered in his place. I wasn't sure whether to be pleased or pissed - it was about fifty-fifty.

Luckily for me, I wouldn't be the only person my age going, as when Shichiro had heard I was attending, he had asked one of his cousins if he could go as well, and she had said yes.

When Kaka-nii and I arrived at the Academy, I have to admit it was quite intimidating. Everyone was so much taller than me - even people my brothers age, who were only two years my elder. I hated being small. I spent most of the time while we waited for the bell to go hiding behind my brother, as their was no way in hell I was going to face this alone. I don't understand how my brother manages to go to this school every day - even the Chunin teachers, who were supposed to be friendly and welcoming looked terrifying to me. During my first life, I could remember all of my Primary school teachers being very parental and friendly, and me still being scared of going to a new place where I didn't know anyone.

I have no idea how I am going to cope when I start the Academy.

When the bell finally went, everyone went into the classrooms, and all of the parents stood at the back, while younger family members sat at free desks. I instantly zeroed in Shichiro, and we sat together near the back of the class, waiting for the Open Day to begin.

Kaka-nii's class was very strange - and I wasn't just talking about Maito Gai. There was boy in third row who was blatantly chewing on a senbon - looking as though he was using a massive toothpick (I had a very strange mind, as Shichiro so often pointed out) - and a boy and girl sitting in the row before me who were overflowing with sexual tension. I mean, they were five, but looked like there was some part of them that just wanted to make out on their desk. I recognised Hayate from my birthday celebrations, and he looked even worse than he had there - I really think that he should have been at the hospital instead of at school. I could easily pick out Shichiro's cousin, Haruka in the front row. She had her hood up as well as the customary sunglasses on, and was watching a seven legged spider hobble across the desk with relative success. It didn't surprise me that she was sitting on her own - I wasn't sure, but I thought that I could spot a maggot in her hair (even Shichiro thought that Haruka was weird).

When the lesson began, I didn't pay very much attention - I knew a lot of the materials from my lessons with Otou-San and Orochimaru, and I could also count on the studious Shichiro to take notes on anything interesting. Instead of listening to the teacher, I began to write within one of the many notebooks I owned.

It was a habit that I had continued from my first life - where I had a tendency to doodle or write stuff down during class when I really should have been listening to what was being said. However, this time, instead of writing down fictional stories, I was jotting down everything I could remember of the Naruto Universe. My knowledge was pitifully bare, as what little I could remember from the series was blurred with time. Even things that I had found interesting during my first life were little more than vague memories now.

Everything that I knew I wrote in English, as any knowledge of the future - no matter how sparse - could be deadly in the wrong hands, and I can still sort-of remember people in Canon having issues with ROOT Shinobi, traitors and spies. English was the perfect code to hide everything I wished to remain secret, as without a Rosetta Stone of some kind, no one would be able to translate it. Anything that I **really** wanted to keep hidden, I then further coded, using a method of translation that I could vaguely remember reading off the back of a juice cartoon. Basically, you wrote out the alphabet on a scrap piece of paper, and then underneath that you write the alphabet backwards. This then allows you to swap the letters around (meaning A becomes Z, and B becomes Y... and so forth) and keep your message hidden. I used this extra coding to hide the information on what I could remember of Danzo's secret dealings, like the seals he used on his ROOT Shinobi, and the deal he made with Hanzo of the Salamander.

I was taking no chances.

After about an hour of the Chunin teacher talking about something or other, and of me filling in my notebooks, the entire class went out for a Taijutsu spar. The adults watched their kids fight against each other, while the younger kids were separated off to get taught a few Kata's. You could tell that the majority of us were from Shinobi Clans, as most of the younger children could already perform Taijutsu stances with relative ease. We then had mock spars, and I was partnered with a girl called Misaki, who was a member of the Branch Family of the Hyuga clan. She was already really good at Taijutsu, and even in the mock spar she targeted my Tenketsu with a vicious sort of glee. However, even though the Hatake weren't a major clan, we were still all Shinobi, and Misaki wasn't the only one who had been training most of their life.

I will admit, it was nice to be able to let loose on someone of my own age (even if she was a good 30cm taller than me. And half a year younger), though it did worry me how much I enjoyed the combat. Though I had been prone to punching my friends in a joking manner in my first life, I wasn't an overly violent person (the people I punched tended to punch me back, and I got into several pencil swordfights with a boy in my History class on a regular basis). I guess it was just a fact of life that in the Elemental Nations, fighting was a way to unwind and relax, not something to be viewed as bad.

When all of the Taijutsu spars were over - for both the younger children who had come for the open day, as well as the actual class - we went to a lecture, while the older children went back to class with the adults. The lecture basically explained all of the subjects we would get to learn about if we went to the Academy, and gave us a brief introduction about each one, in the hopes of interesting us enough that we would chose to become Shinobi and Kunoichi in our futures.

And it was here that I first learnt about the incredible art of Fuinjutsu.

The teacher running through the workshop with us didn't talk about it for very long - briefly mentioning the rise and fall of Uzushiogakure, the capabilities of the sealing art and the dedication needed to succeed at it - but it planted the idea in my mind. Due to my Chakra Hypersensitivity, I would never be capable of becoming a Ninjutsu Specialist, as I would be more likely to just burn myself out and land in the hospital that defeat any of my enemies. But, Fuinjutsu would be able to give me the power to protect my family and friends. The capabilities were endless. I could activate anything that used large amounts of chakra from a distance, so that I wouldn't be affected, and many of the applications of Sealing actually required very little chakra - from what I knew at least. Whenever you were sealing something away, you just had to provide enough energy for the Seal to be self-sustaining - and this would be immediately put to use - meaning that I wouldn't be affected greatly.

It was perfect.

At the end of the day, I met up with Kaka-nii to walk back home. As soon as we arrived back at the Clan Compound, I left for the library, while my brother practiced his skill with a Tantō, so that he could impress Otou-san when he returned from his mission in a few days. Kakashi practically worshipped our father - it was kinda cute.

The Clan Library was my favourite room within our home. It was filled with books on every subject that I could think of - and then some. There were scrolls on Jutsu and Taijutsu forms, as well as the history of our Clan - from back when we were a Clan of Farmers until the present day, when we are renowned as prodigy Shinobi's. There was also a secret room underneath the library that Otou-san had shown me on my second birthday - just a few weeks before. This room contained Clan Secrets, and information on the Hatake Chakra Mutation, the White Chakra. It also contained all of the Summoning Scrolls that my Clan was in possession of and records keeping track of every member of our family that had ever lived. The entire Clan Library smelt of old paper and ink, and I loved just curling up on the window seat to read whatever book took my fancy, from dawn to dusk. I had been an avid reader in my past life, and exceptionally proud of my ability to read any book, no matter how thick or thin in under a day. That hadn't changed in my new life. I had read a large portion of the books within the Library at least once, however, my favourite was without a doubt, 'Tale of a Gutsy Ninja', by Jiraiya of the Sannin. I could remember it being mentioned throughout the Naruto Anime and Mangas, but I don't think it was ever fully appreciated. It was a lot better than the perverted crap that Jiraiya-sama had written in later years. It was a tale about a ninja named Naruto, who travelled the world in search of peace. It had no definitive ending (simply ending with the Ninja saying he would find peace) but it passed on a powerful message - that no matter how hard things may get, you should never give up. Apparently, it had never sold well, even though it was a fairly good book. My more cynical nature made it easy to understand why. The novel had been aimed at adult ninjas - most of whom wouldn't have time to read a book for leisure anyway. The remaining percentage of the target audience who **could** have read the book, simply wouldn't, because even though the story was realistic, and clearly based on Jiraiya-sama's travels, it was incredibly positive. If you didn't believe that peace was possible, you simply wouldn't be able to appreciate the novel. At all.

Normally, I would have picked up the copy that I always left by the window, and read at least a few lines of the book I now knew from memory (there was always some tiny moral message or other titbit that I missed, but managed to pick up when I next read it, I could always learn more from the novel), however, today I had a purpose.

I needed to learn Fuinjutsu. And quickly.

I quickly gathered up all the books on beginners Sealing that I could find, before spreading them around me and writing out detailed comprehensive notes on everything that I could find in one of my many notebooks. It was hard going, as most of the information was heavily coded, or had large sections missing, but I think I managed to get the gist of it. A lot of sealing was actually based off of maths and algebra, as well as dealing with chakra and physics. You had to use specific characters to alternate the physics of the seal, allowing people to create Space-Time techniques and Storage Seals. In this regard, I had an advantage over other Fuinjutsu trainees. As someone who had spent their first life learning a great deal about maths, algebra and physics (I had wanted to be an engineer, so I had to know them all _really_ well), it would be far easier for me to learn all the separate components of sealing, compared to someone who was starting from scratch. From what I knew of the Academy Ninja curriculum, they only learnt a couple of years worth of maths - and even then it was only the basics.

Kaede: 1. Puny mortals: 0. Mwhahaha!

However, some of the main Fuinjutsu users throughout history were the former Uzumaki Clan, who had created some of the most incredible seals ever to exist, so I guess they had a pretty good advantage too. It had been them who had invented the Four Symbols Seal - a technique which allowed the user to seal any target into a human body or other object. Actually, the majority of Seals that I researched were created by the Uzumaki Clan - even exploding tags had been invented by them.

The books also told me about how someone should go about learning the rare art of Fuinjutsu. It stated that people could learn the beginnings of Sealing on their own, but that any advanced techniques should be practiced with a sealing master, or other high ranked Fuinjutsu user present. It also stated that whenever you test a seal, another Fuinjutsu user of higher rank should check it over first, and that you should always have water nearby and available in case of Spontaneous Combustion. Only when someone achieved the rank of Master, would they be able to practice and create new seals alone.

Seal Master Kaede Hatake. It had a nice ring to it.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **Holy Moly, thank you all so much for the wonderful reaction to the last chapter! There were so many favourites and follows - it made me so happy!**

 **Also, this is my headcanon for how Kaede came to be. In Canon, we know that Kakashi's mum died when he is very young. My version of events has her dieing during childbirth, but her daughter - who looks just like her - is stillborn in Canon, leaving Kakashi without a sibling or a mum. In this fic, the empty body is filled with Kaede's displaced soul, keeping her alive.**

 **Here are the ages of the main characters at the end of this chapter, just in case I didn't make it clear how old they all were.**

 **Kakashi Hatake -** 4 years old

 **Sakumo Hatake -** 27 years old

 **Kaede Hatake -** 2 years old

 **Shichiro Aburame -** 2 years old

 **Please review to tell me what you think.**

 **What do you think of Shichiro?**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**

 **Ellie**


	4. Chapter 4

" _Man, kids these days. They think it's a competition to have the most friends. One is enough. Find someone completely unique." - Yato, Noragami._

* * *

The Hatake Clan Compound was near the very edge of Konoha, and was fairly close to both the Nara Compound, and their forests. The Compound itself was very large, and was surrounded by a couple of acres of land - left over from when we had been a family of Farmers, rather than Ninja's. The place was mainly empty, as the once huge family (that could rival even the Uchiha and Senju, numbers wise) had dwindled to just three people. My father, my brother and me.

The Building was made up of just a single level, much like a sprawling bungalow, crafted by hand from wood that the Clan members had grown from tiny saplings - imbuing with their Chakra - before being cut down by those same Clan members to build their home. Much like the Naras, a Hatake was always strongest on their home turf, as the ambient Chakra that whirled through the air was tainted with the blood and life of the Clan that had lived and died on that soil for generations.

The Nature Chakra within the compound was incredible. It was constantly swirling and spiralling through the air, like liquid fire. It added to the ambiance of the building, as this natural chakra was sharp with the electrical currents that my Clan was known for. The buildings themselves had been built into a large square shape, with a courtyard in the centre, and a meeting hall at the back, though this was now mostly unused. Most of the rooms were connected by a large hallway that ran in a U-shape through the compound, with communal areas by the entrance. The final building was the home of the Clan head, and was next to the meeting hall, alongside the Dojo. This is where my family and I lived.

The entire Compound was surrounded by thick stone walls, covered in intricate Seal Work done by the Fuinjutsu Masters of Uzushiogakure (when it had still stood), and I always loved to study them. The earliest ninjas of the Hatake Clan had once worked entirely as bodyguards, and used to often be hired as a protection detail for the less warrior-like Fuinjutsu users of the Land of Whirlpool. Huge towering gates, embellished with the Hatake Clan Emblem gave entrance to the Compound, welded into the wall and topped with sharp spikes to deter intruders. The stone wall and wrought iron gates were all that was left of the original compound, as the buildings had been destroyed in an attack during the Second Shinobi War. The Compound had once been far larger, but as the once illustrious Clan had begun to drop in numbers, due to the bombing of the Compound, as well as the many battles that made up the War, the new Compound was made about half the size of the original. You could still see where the foundations of the original buildings had been, but only if you really searched for them. Most of the spare space was turned into training fields or land to grow crops on, and the newly established courtyard was turned into a beautiful flower garden. The Compound was beautiful, and though it was mainly empty, it felt like home to me.

Today, Shichiro and I were in the Courtyard, watching the first insects bob between the early buds of Spring. Shichiro had out a slightly battered notebook, and was carefully drawing out an anatomically accurate model of the inside of each insect, alongside pictures of their outwards appearance. Next to each sketch were tiny notes scribbled in a slightly unsteady hand, detailing all of the defense mechanisms and facts that the young Aburame knew about each species. I liked watching my friend draw - it was one of the few times that he allowed his emotions to be visible, as he highly disliked drawing attention in public. His tongue was sticking out and he was concentrating determinedly in a way that made me 'coo'. However, considering we were technically the same age, I managed to restrain myself. It would just have been weird.

I was actually working on my Fuinjutsu. Using thick crayons, I was working on copying out the symbols that made up the seals for storage scrolls and exploding tags. Since I wasn't using ink or rice paper, the seals wouldn't actually do anything, but it was a good way to practice quickly writing them out - especially as the crayon was a lot more bulky than the long, fine brushes that were used to write in ink. Otou-San was still in bed, as he had just gotten back from a dangerous Solo Mission the night before, and was still recuperating from the week away. I think Kaka-nii was still at the Academy, even though the school day had ended quite a while ago. I can vaguely remember him mentioning that some of the people in his year group were planning to go to the park and play 'Ninja,' and he had decided that it was the safest bet to avoid Gai (who had only just managed to make it into the Academy) and his strange challenges. So far, the weirdest one they had done was an over the top game of 'Rock, Paper, Scissors,' but even without the knowledge of my first life, I would have been able to tell that they would get a whole lot weirder as time went on.

Today, Shichiro looked really anxious about something - which was unusual, as even though we had been friends for a while now, he was usually a great deal better at hiding his emotions (even if I was normally okay at telling what he was thinking about. Shinobi training strikes again).

"What's wrong?" I finally spoke up. There was only so long I could patiently wait for my friend to start speaking, and Shichiro had always been better at out-waiting me. I watched him as he fiddled with the edge of his coat, looking anywhere but at me. Neither of us were far enough along in our ninja training to not have nervous habits and tells - we were only two, even if neither of us acted or looked like it. He sat in silence for a few more minutes, before finally speaking up.

"There were some kids, at our usual park." His voice was quieter than usual (if that was at all possible), and I could tell that whatever had happened had really hurt him. It made my blood boil. "I didn't bother them, or anything. But they called me a 'disgusting, freaky bug person'. They said I shouldn't be allowed in the park. Or even the village. It's happened before, so I should be used to it… But it still hurts." It seemed as though, when Shichiro stopped talking, the world was silent for a moment. It just made me so incredibly angry. I know that all the people who said these things were young, but that certainly didn't excuse the parents of any responsibility. If children thought it was okay to say these things to people, then they had clearly been raised by parents who thought the same thing.

I can remember back in my first life watching the Naruto series, and thinking how awful many of the characters lives were - wondering how they could possibly deal with the prejudice and discrimination they were subjected to. I had felt so much Sympathy for those characters. Naruto. Kakashi. Hinata. Gaara. Haku. And so many more.

But it was so much worse when you were experiencing it in _your_ life.

Watching young children only just older than me be so incredibly horrible to their fellow humans - never being told off or punished for their racist remarks - was disgusting to witness. But it wasn't just kids who didn't know better, either. So many of the people in the village would judge others for things beyond their control - acting horribly, rather than like the adults they were supposed to be.

It made me sick.

"Sometimes," It was difficult to find the right words, but Shichiro was my best friend, so I would try and find them. "Sometimes, people can be horrible and petty, and the things they say can hurt so much more than a kunai. But no matter what anyone says to you, as long as you remain strong and know in your heart that they are wrong, then they will never be able to touch you, and you will always rise above them. So have patience, and remain true to yourself, and you will become unstoppable."

Shichiro smiled softly to himself, and I knew my words had gotten through to him.

* * *

It was about five O'clock when Kaka-nii finally returned home, and Otou-san managed to drag himself out of bed. His hair was even messier than usual (which I had previously thought to be impossible. It was clearly a Ninja Technique used to help hair defy gravity, no other explanations), and he was rummaging around in his Weapons pouch with a dazed look in his eyes. Eventually, he fished out a Soldier Pill, and mixed it into the cup of coffee Kaka-nii had left on the counter for him - using a small _Katon Jutsu_ to warm it up a bit. Kakashi and I rolled our eyes as we watched our father over the top of our separate notebooks (I was working on Fuinjutsu (again), and I think that Kaka-nii was working on some homework from the Academy, as well as High Level Ninjutsu theory). When the Legendary White Fang finally began to look alive, and less like a zombie fresh from his grave, we began to actually talk as a family (shocker).

We didn't actually get to spend very much time as family, all of us far too busy with erratic schedules that never matched up. It meant that whenever we could spend time together, just talking about anything and everything, that it was something to be treasured. Family was special to everyone within Konoha - it encouraged the Shinobi to always try their hardest to return to the village, and helped the Civilians maintain hope during the darker days, and the stifling wars. Konohagakure was a huge family like no other, the Will of Fire uniting as all, and making us a village like no other. We certainly weren't the largest village in the Elemental Nations, but our determination and camaraderie gave us a Strength that was equal to that of Kumo and Iwa.

Talking with the rest of the Hatake Clan (however small it was nowadays), was always a strange experience for me - entirely due to my previous life. I can't really remember the details, nor what exactly I looked or acted like, but I have fifteen years worth of memories from my first life, and only two from this one. Those memories will _always_ affect me. Like, sometimes I will walk past a mirror and see a stranger looking back at me, not realising it was me. Other times, I would expect to be far taller than I am now, and end up tripping over and sprawling all over the floor. I can't remember how tall I was in my first life, but I am currently two, so I can garauntee I was definitely taller than I am now.

Talking with my new family is also one of those moments. We don't talk as a group very often, so I've never got used to the weird dynamic between the three of us. In my old family, we'd eat and talk together every single day, and had done so for the majority of my life. In my new family, we all kind of live in our own little bubbles, only occasionally coming into contact with each other. Kaka-nii was determined to become a ninja to make our father proud, while Otou-san was almost constantly on missions or training due to the terrible relations between the five major villages. I was also pretty bad at interacting with the other two.

I wanted to change the future, and ensure my family have long happy lives, but I can barely remember my old name, let alone an anime series I stopped watching several months before my death. And, whatever part of the universe I'm in, was barely mentioned at the point of the series I stopped in. My only hope is to get as strong as possible in order to keep as many of my friends and family alive, for as long as possible.

Not that that's going to be difficult **at all.**

(That was sarcasm, just to be clear. I'm totally screwed).

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **Sorry for taking so long to update this story. I've had to focus on my National Five Exams and homework for Highers as well. I've also had a Duke of Edinburgh silver award to work towards and a school trip to New York, so I've had very little time to write. I also faced some serious writer's block. Dear god, I am completely incapable of writing fluffy stuff. I wanted this chapter to focus on Kaede's friendship and family, but almost every draft I managed to write, always ended up super angst-y. I have managed to write one single story in my entire life that if fluff, and even that was about 75% angst, so I hope this turned out okay. I even have a reputation at school for being a bit morbid, and killing off all of my characters in stories. Ehehehehe...**

 **On another note, I CANNOT, for the life of me, write dialogue. *slam head against wall repeatedly* It was very difficult trying to get the characters to interact in a way that didn't feel forced, so any comments on how I did would be welcome.**

 **These are the ages of characters in this chapter, in case it wasn't clear. It was hard to write them at an appropriate intelligence and ability level, but even in Canon, everyone is more mature than they should be. Take Itachi for example, he is thirteen when he massacres everyone in his clan, but he acts and looks about about eighteen, at the minimum. Nobody acts their age. I think everyone in the Naruto-verse is treated as if they were older than they are, so they act more mature, by at least five years. Anyway, ages are below.**

 **Kakashi Hatake -** 4 years old

 **Sakumo Hatake -** 27 years old

 **Kaede Hatake -** 2 years old

 **Shichiro Aburame -** 2 years old

 **What did people think of this chapter? Sorry for the huge rant of an author's note, hopefully won't happen again.**

 **Hope you enjoyed!**

 **Ellie**


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